Delectable (and often decadent) confections draw Windy City visitors and locals alike to Sarah's Pastries & Candies, a sliver of a shop on Chicago's exclusive Oak Street. Shelves stocked with dipped marshmallows and turtles made with chocolate and vanilla-bean caramel are likely to tempt, but it's the tiered cakes lining the counter that amaze with their delicate, whimsical, always intriguing designs. Some--favorites of owner Sarah Levy-are just big enough to be shared by two. "Sweet!" as the saying goes.

"There's something very special about combining butter, sugar, and flour into a gift," Sarah notes. "It takes planning, energy, and thought that show in the results. A cake for two is about the person with whom you share it."

Sarah's miniature cakes are classics: vanilla, two varieties of chocolate (can you ever have just one?), banana, and coconut--with equally delicious fillings.

While it is what's inside that counts, it's the absolutely gorgeous fondant and buttercream exteriors that will cause the initial swoon. First impressions, after all, are so very important.

Never attempted to use fondant because it looks difficult? Think again. The sweet covering encourages creativity. (Find it in the cake decorating aisle of a crafts store.) "Fondant is just as easy to work with as pastry," Sarah says. "You knead it, roll it out, and shape it to the cake."

From there, it's a simple process of smoothing and stretching the fondant over the buttercream-covered cake. Fondant has a natural elasticity that eliminates pleating at corners and curves.

Satiny-smooth buttercream dresses the coconut and banana cakes. Sarah gets the picture-perfect finish with two essential tools--a small offset spatula and a dough (or bench) scraper. "Turn the cake plate as you go," she advises. "Or, use a lazy Susan to turn the cake."

Use cookie cutters to cut shapes from the fondant; attach them with a dab of water. Pipe on designs with small-tipped pastry bags.

Sarah studied at Chicago's French Pastry School, starting two weeks after graduating from Northwestern University. In 2004, she began making candies in her mom's kitchen. Sarah now has two shops and has authored her first cookbook, Sweetness.

Design inspiration comes from many sources: lace from a wedding dress, an invitation, the delicate henna patterns traced onto the hands of a Hindu bride. Mostly it's the recipient who inspires Sarah. "A cake that makes someone happy is the best reward," she says.

Allow whites to stand at room temperature 30 minutes in medium bowl. Add dash of salt. Beat with clean beaters of electric mixer until frothy; set aside. In small saucepan combine sugar and water. Bring to boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Gradually drizzle sugar syrup into egg whites while beating with mixer on medium to high speed. Continue beating until very frothy. Gradually beat in butter, one tablespoon at a time, until creamy and smooth. (Mixture may appear curdled during beating, but will become creamy when all of butter is added.) Beat in vanilla until combined. Store in refrigerator up to 3 days or freeze up to 1 month. Let stand at room temperature until softened. Makes 2 2/3 cups frosting.

*When preparing foods with raw eggs, such as buttercream, we believe pasteurized "shell eggs" are the safest choice to avoid potentially harmful bacteria. Pasteurized eggs in the shell are available at select supermarkets nationwide; go to SafeEggs.com/consumers/store-locator for retailers.

Add flour mixture and butter to remaining cocoa mixture; beat with electric mixer on medium speed 1 1/2 minutes. Add cocoa-egg mixture one half at a time, mixing well after each addition. Pour into prepared pans. (Reserve remaining batter.)

Bake 22 to 24 minutes or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rack 10 minutes. Remove cakes from pans. Cool completely. Trim edges of cakes if necessary. Bake two more cakes with remaining batter.

Meanwhile, in small saucepan combine 1/4 cup sugar and unflavored gelatin; whisk in thawed passionfruit purée and egg yolk. Cook and whisk constantly over medium heat until thick (10 to 12 minutes). Whisk in softened butter. Transfer to small bowl; place in bowl of ice water. Cover top with plastic wrap; cool.

Place one cake on small plate; top with half of chilled passionfruit mixture. Top with another cake. Make second cake with remaining cakes and filling. Tint 1/3 cup Vanilla Buttercream with pink food coloring. Place frosting in pastry bag fitted with small round tip. Tint 2 tablespoons of buttercream red. Place in pastry bag fitted with small round tip. Set aside. Frost top and sides of cakes with remaining buttercream. Wrap and freeze one cake for up to 1 month, if desired. Chill second cake in freezer 1 hour before decorating.

To assemble cake, trim tops of cake layers so they are level. Split cake layers horizontally to make four layers. Place one cake layer on serving plate. Spread one-third of Key Lime Filling on top. Top with second cake layer. Repeat, alternating filling and remaining two cake layers. Frost with Vanilla Buttercream, using offset spatula or dough scraper to smooth frosting on sides and top. Place remaining buttercream in pastry bag fitted with small round tip. Pipe design around sides of cake. Makes 1 cake (2 servings).

To decorate cakes, divide fondant in half and tint each portion with one shade of green paste food coloring. Roll out fondant to 1/8- to 1/4-inch thickness on a surface sprinkled with powdered sugar. Using a small 3/4- to 1-inch leaf cutter, cut shapes from fondant. Score leaves with knife to create veining; pinch leaves at bottom to add dimension. Brush bottom of leaves with water and attach to cake. In small bowl combine 1/4 cup Chocolate Buttercream and melted unsweetened chocolate. Place chocolate mixture in pastry bag fitted with small round tip. Pipe chocolate branches onto cake; pipe bead border on base of cake. Wrap and freeze one cake up to 1 month, if desired. Store second cake in refrigerator. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving. Makes 2 cakes (2 servings each).

Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake in preheated oven 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Remove; cool in pans on wire rack 5 minutes. Carefully remove from pans. Cool completely. Wrap and freeze one cake up to 1 month, if desired.

With a serrated knife, trim top of cake so it is level. Cut cake horizontally in half. Place cake bottom on cake plate, cut side up. Arrange strawberries over cake bottom. Spread Vanilla Whipped Cream over strawberries. Add cake top, cut side down. Use small offset spatula or table knife to smooth any whipped cream from edges of cake. Frost top and sides with Vanilla Buttercream. Chill cake in freezer 1 hour before decorating.

To decorate cake, set aside 1/3 of fondant. Roll remaining fondant to 1/8-inch thickness on surface sprinkled lightly with powdered sugar. Cut into 3/4-inch-wide strips about 12 inches long. Roll half of remaining fondant to 1/8-inch thickness into a circle the diameter of top cake (about 5 inches). Lay fondant round on top of cake. Tint remaining fondant to desired shade of pink. Roll out fondant to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into 3/4-inch-wide strips. Brush top of cake with water. Starting in center attach pink fondant strips to cake in spiral fashion to simulate a rose. Using a small paintbrush, paint edge of rose strips with red food coloring. For sides, starting at top of cake wrap fondant strips around sides of cake in spiral to cover entire cake, overlapping strips slightly. Makes 2 cakes (2 servings each).

With serrated knife, trim tops and sides of remaining cakes so they are the same size. Spread one cake with 2 tablespoons Milk Chocolate Filling. Top with remaining cake. Frost stack with 2/3 cup Chocolate Buttercream. Place cake in freezer 1 hour.

To decorate cake, roll out fondant to 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick on surface sprinkled with powdered sugar. Place over chilled cake. Trim to fit over cake. Place another 2/3 cup Chocolate Buttercream in pastry bag fitted with small round tip. Place melted chocolate in small disposable plastic bag; snip off small corner. Use Chocolate Buttercream and melted chocolate to pipe alternate-color dots over top and sides of cake. Makes 1 cake (2 servings) plus 2 cake layers.